Say Hello, Not Goodbye

by Andrea Officer

The last few years have been hard for Catherine Lothbury. Suffering from agoraphobia she's never left the sanctuary of her house, and with no friends to help her she's started to believe that she'll be stuck inside forever. Enter Elliot Farringdon, a soldier in the British army, who vows to help Catherine overcome her fears and reintroduces her to the outside world. Their friendship quickly grows until they become inseparable, but when Elliot is sent away on deployment Catherine finds herself feeling far more alone than she did before. And when he doesn't return home she starts to believe that she's lost him forever. Two years pass and they end up meeting again by chance. But when they do they both discover that their lives have become very different. . .

88 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 19, 2021

About the author

As someone who grew up reading any book I could get my hands on it wasn't long until I realised I wanted to be an author.
I've been writing stories since I was in school and over the many years I have developed my craft into what it is today.
After studying journalism at university I found my inspiration to become a writer and have self-published two books so far, with many more to come.
I am always writing and working on any ideas that come to me. I also always have my journal with me so when inspiration hits I have a way to document it.
I'm an avid reader too and keep a book journal where I review all the books I read.
I believe all writers should be avid readers as I've discovered it's the best way to hone your writing skills and improve your own work.

Reviews

[Ruth Choppen · Rating 4 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️ I read this lovely book in one sitting - it was such a captivating and wonderful book. Whilst this was a short novel so much happens. The novel covers the sensitive topic of agoraphobia but does so in a relatable and respectful manner. The plot is centred around Catherine and Elliott and how they develop together all while Catherine struggles to overcome her agoraphobia. This was a light hearted and enjoyable read - a perfect read for a relaxing afternoon and I would definitely recommend it!

[Suhasini · Rating 4 out of 5]

Based on the title and the blurb, I thought that this book is going to be an emotionally intensive romantic book. But the Author proved me wrong in my initial expectations about this book. But, I wouldn't say that this book disappointed me. It's a light-hearted romantic book with easy to read narration style.

This is the first time for me to read a story about Agoraphobia. So, I would have really appreciated it if Author has dwelled more on how Catherine got this phobia and how Elliot has helped her overcome that phobia. Especially the part when, Elliot was deployed overseas and Catherine starts trying to live her own life, going out and managing things on her own. It needs a lot of effort and many failures for Catherine to come to that stage. Had the author dwelled on these topics, it would have become all the more interesting book.

At times, I felt that the characters needed more depth and shown their other side of the lives as well in this book. As otherwise, it's difficult to understand how come suddenly these characters display some of the emotions, which hitherto were not observed in them.

Overall, this is a light-hearted book to spend the lazy summer afternoons with a nice cool drink in hand. The romantic narrations described are more matured and not mushy in this book, which makes the book enjoyable.

Note: I got the free copy of this book during the book tour organized by Love Book Tours in exchange for my honest review. My review is completely my own and not influenced by anyone.

[Read, Read, No Sleep, Repeat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Say Hello Not Goodbye is a contemporary romance with a twist. The heroine Catherine suffers from agoraphobia following a traumatic incident in her past and the only contact that she has with the outside world is enigmatic soldier Elliot.

This is a tale of two halves that centres around the two main characters with a small number of supporting characters. It initially focusses on Catherine’s struggles to overcome her fears with support from Elliot, then follows Catherine and Elliot’s journeys five years later when they reconnect and begin to explore their feelings for one another.

This novella was a very enjoyable read and I devoured it in an evening. The story flowed well and the author handled the topic of Catherine’s agoraphobia sensitively and convincingly.

A lot happened in this novella and I feel that there would be scope to further explore certain aspects of this story if it was longer. I’d love to know how Catherine and Elliot initially met and how he gained her trust, as well as more about Catherine’s experiences in continuing to overcoming her agoraphobia in Elliot’s absence.

Overall it was an enjoyable read.

[Bookswithacuppa · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars
This is a dinky novella that I cruised through in an afternoon. It’s not my normal go to genre, by any means, (I’m all about the psychological thrillers) but the synopsis intrigued me.

It’s a really easy read and flows well. The story mainly focuses on the relationship between the two main characters and how this develops over time. There’s a lot of potential for the book to explore, if it was longer, such as Catherine’s agoraphobia, and how she managed to overcome this and regain her life - also some exploration of what happened to her prior to the beginning of the book, and how Elliot came into her life would be intriguing.

I don’t feel I was engaged with this story as I normally would be, but I think this is more down to my personal preference and needing the “hook” of a thriller, rather than the story itself. However, It was quite a light hearted story, and nicely written - recommended for a cozy Sunday afternoon with a cuppa.

[Bianca Duthie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a novella which I think could easily be stretched out into a full length novel which would help the storyline massively.
Catherine's agoraphobia almost completely vanishes, I'd have liked more on the work she did to combat this. More while Elliot was deployed about how Catherine kept pushing herself.
The relationship between Catherine and Elliot is difficult to contemplate. While at times it was lovely, at others I didn't like either character.
An easy to read novella that most could enjoy.

[Daisy Hollands · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book covers the really interesting topic of agoraphobia. It’s a timely read. After most of the UK had been stuck inside due to the pandemic, I'm sure a lot of people are having mixed feelings about returning to “normal life” and having to go back out into the world regularly. Is that your home or your prison?

A nicely written, well formed but slightly formulaic story. I would like to read more from this author.